1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a photosensitive material processing apparatus in which processing solution for processing a photosensitive material is reliably squeezed from the photosensitive material and which is suitable for, for example, a printer processor, a film processor, and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
For example, a plurality of processing tanks which stores processing solution or water for color development, bleach-fixing, rinsing, stabilization, and the like is provided at a photosensitive material processing apparatus (e.g., a film processor, a printer processor, and the like) serving as an automatic processor. As a film or a color paper serving as a photosensitive material is conveyed into these processing tanks in a predetermined order, the film or the color paper is developed.
In the development processing, squeeze rollers formed by a pair of rollers are provided at respective processing tanks so as to nip the photosensitive material. The processing solution in each of the processing tanks is squeezed from the photosensitive material by the squeeze rollers and will not be introduced into the next processing tank. A pair of rollers which is wider than the width of the photosensitive material has been used for the squeeze rollers.
However, when the processing solution is squeezed from the photosensitive material by the squeeze rollers, because the photosensitive material is nipped by the pair of rollers which is wider than the width of the photosensitive material, the transverse direction end portions of the photosensitive material are nipped by these rollers. As a result, the processing solution wiped off from the surfaces of the photosensitive material by the pair of rollers may be applied again to the photosensitive material.
Namely, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, when processing solution L applied onto a photosensitive material P is wiped off by squeeze rollers 116 formed by a roller 112 and a roller 114, a solution storing portion 118 generates at the upstream side of a portion between the pair of rollers 112, 114. The processing solution L flows from the solution storing portion 118 to the conveying direction downstream side of the photosensitive material P with respect to the squeeze rollers 116 through a gap S which is formed between the pair of rollers and at the side end portions of the photosensitive material P. Accordingly, there is worry that the processing solution L is applied again to the photosensitive material P which has passed between the squeeze rollers 116 and that the processing solution L is introduced into the next processing tank.